This is our last full day with Mateo in Guatemala....

Today is our last full day with Mateo before we have to bring him back to the CNA tomorrow. We have to bring him back at noon on Tuesday. We have had a great time with him. Its been fun getting to know him better and he us. He has had a hard time taking naps and going to bed at night, not sure why but he lays there for quite awhile before he goes to bed, I am hoping that he is okay when we leave and adjusts back to his schedule at the hogar.

We are ready to go home, its been hard to be cooped up in 1 hotel room for 13 days. We miss Rylie & Adyson like crazy, and cant wait to jump off the plane and hug them both. This is the longest we have gone without being with them. They have been busy with their grandma's, aunts, and cousins...so they have had fun but I think they are ready too.

Yesterday we spent the day in Amatitlan. It is the city where Mateo was born. We tried to give him a little pony ride there although he wanted nothing to do with it. Then we went up a cable car..VERY HIGH i might add..and looked at the view of the lake at the city. That was fun. At the top we stopped and got Mateo a chocolate banana...he loved it of course, as did I! Then we decided to drive to Port San Jose, which was about another hour from Amatitlan..and went to the beach. THey have black sand beaches, so it was beautiful. IT was Mateo's first time being at the beach. He LOVED it! We hadnt planned to go so we went in just a ways in our clothes and quickly got them soaked, so we stripped Mateo down to his superman undies and let him play..he was in HEAVEN. That was an awesome experinece. The lake is called Lake Amatitlan. Then afterwards we stopped at a resort and ate at a hotel. Doug started feeling sick so he got a bit grumpy, and then ended up sleeping awhile on the way back to the hotel. We say beautiful views the whole way home. GUatemala is a beautiful country. We saw Pacaya ..which is a famous volcano in Guatemala. We saw smoke coming out as well as lava flows, which was awesome.

Got back to our room and gave Mateo & I a bath...as we both has sand all over us, and then ate some pizza for dinner, and off to bed. It took about 45 min or more to get Mateo to sleep. Doug seems to do the best job getting him to fall asleep. If you hold him or rock him he just lays there quite, but awake. If you lay next to him, he will lay there for hours awake...so if has to be very dark, no noise, and you cant talk with him or try to soothe him..or he will stay awake, so we had to let him cry it out...that was hard as a mom.

Today we are planning to just really enjoy our time with Mateo. We are staying at the hotel and doing the pool thing again. We have dinner plans with another parent coming to visit her daughter tonight and then that is it. Tomorrow we have to have Mateo back to the CNA by noon and then we will go with CLaudia to do last minute shopping for CHristmas presents. We are looking to buy a large little tykes play area for Christmas for the hogar. This was it can stay out and the kids can play with it. They seem to keep the little toys put away most of the time so I dont want to bring any little toys. THe little tykes are too big to put away they will have to be put together and then left in the courtyard for the kids to play with all day.

Thank you all for your prayers. DOug and I fly out on Wed morning at 7AM, so pray for a safe return flight home. Blessings...